Villa blog: The Road is Long
Villa blogger Dave Bytheway urges the fans to remember how far the club have come as the season draws to a disappointing close.
It's all gone pretty flat to be honest in and around Villa Park, so I don't think I would be alone in wishing this season would end now, so we can move on to the next stage of Martin O'Neill's five year plan.
Every week I seem to repeat myself. What we need to move forward, what we have to do to reach the next level, to be fair it is mainly pretty negative - or at least reading my blogs back it comes over that way.
OK, the season has whimpered out to nothing, so many promises failed to be delivered, but we are so much further ahead of what we were four years ago as a football club negativity shouldn't play a part.
Three years ago, we were almost relegated from the Premier League. We had a very poor squad made up of journeymen players who didn't care for the club.
We had a chairman in Doug Ellis who was allowing the club to stagnate, together they were taking us to levels we shouldn't have been anywhere near.
Then, in August 2006, two things that changed the outlook of the club happened.
Firstly, as Mr Ellis still seems to still want to take credit for, Martin O'Neill came in to replace the sacked David O'Leary. The welcome he received from fans was like nothing I had ever seen before.
The fans were back behind the club, the atmosphere around the club was instantly lifted. Then, a few days later Randy Lerner finally gained control, promising to take the club to where it belongs.
They, as a team, have both done what they said they would do. We have gone from bottom four to top five.
The little touches like free coach travel, flags, very low ticket prices etc, give something back for the fans continued loyalty.
We now have consistent average gates of over 40,000. Every away game sells out. We're back, and we're so close now to getting where we want to be.
Next season will define whether everything is working as it should be. We will without doubt see players come and go, but the nucleus is there.
We are ready for the challenge and will show people what we can do.
As a Villa fan, take a step back, and remember the banners over the Holte End, 'we're not fickle, we just don't like you.'
Remember standing in the freezing cold at Doncaster and coming home having lost 3-0 to a team two tiers below us.
Losing to our major rivals at St Andrews. This list can go on, and on, and on. Now open your eyes again and look where we are.
Negativity? What negativity!
Up the Villa!
